By: CeCe Marie
After entering through the pink glazed door of Festive Collective, guests were greeted for check-in. Each person was handed a pen along with a sticky notepad. They were asked to anonymously write down two fun facts about themselves that nobody knows.
With Solonge’s soft and elegant vocals playing through the speakers, the intimate mood of the event was starting to be set for each guest to get comfortable. The bottomless mimosa bar allowed custom drinks with the choice of orange, pineapple, papaya, or kiwi strawberry juice. To compliment the drinks, a treat table provided doughnuts from Glazed. With their pink champagne glasses in hand, guests circled the room checking out stations that included pieces of art from Hailey Losselyong, clothes from wardrobe stylist Miss Style Coach, a bath scrub activity bar from Macnifiscent products, and a henna bar by Velvet Bananas.
To break the ice before the panel started, the sticky notes that were filled out at the start of the event were placed in a jar. Each person in the room selected a sticky note and was challenged to find who the note was written by based off of the two fun facts on the sheet. My fun facts were that I was conceived in a tent and that I am a great aunt. I struggled to find the person from my sheet because it said that they had over 20 tattoos and I couldn’t find any guest that was inked up.
After the game the room converted from a playground into a classroom. The panel was themed around the topic of networking, including the dos and don’ts for entrepreneurs to add to their skill set tool belt. They covered everything from the meaning of support to women entrepreneurs surviving in a male dominated industry.
Ciara Jibri was the host of the networking social. Below is a Q&A with Jibri, discussing her vision for this new monthly networking series along with her own advice about networking and putting together events.
1. Your bio on Twitter states that you wear many hats. What hats do you wear and how would you describe yourself and your brand?
I am woman of many hats, to some I am a publicist, a manager, event coordinator, or creative director. The statement plays a huge part into the roles in my career and my signature accessory “THE NESSA CAP” that is branded with my company.
2. What is your vision for HAUS OF MIMOSA and what can we look forward to with your upcoming networking events?
My vision with HAUS OF MIMOSA is to simply connect people from all walks of life. I created the platform for creatives to build different relationships whether their personal or business related. For future HAUS OF MIMOSA socials, you can look forward to workshops, film screenings, surprise guests and more.
3. What are the challenges of pulling off a networking event like this and how do you overcome those obstacles ?
The 3 biggest challenges I would say with planning ANY event honestly would be the small details, finding out the missing variables, and trial and error. By staying focused, not panicking and making sure you’re going over every detail is how you can overcome these obstacles.
4. What advice do you have for others about networking?
My advice would be that networking is very crucial to a persons career, no matter the field. The saying “it’s not what you know, but who you know” is a true statement! Building relationships with people in your field is extremely essential with starting a business because that gives you a different perspective for growth and learning.
5. When someone attends your event what do you want them to get out of it ? What do you want them to experience and remember?
I want people to come to my events with a open mind and eager to learn. My vision is for people to break out of their norms and network to build relationships with those both like and totally different from themselves. Leaving, i want my guests to leave inspired & ready to take over the world!
6. At the start of the event each guest had to write down two fun facts about themselves. What are two fun facts about yourself that many don’t know?
Two fun facts about myself, hmmm …. I am a pizza conessouir and I know how to sing! (Don’t tell anybody hahaha)
7. Are you coffee, tea or tequila? Why?
I would say I am TEQUILA!! 1. Because my favorite drink is a margarita lol and 2. When I see people drink tequila, they’re usually hyper and energetic and that describes me perfectly! I have such a bubbly personality!
Follow Ciaria and HAUS OF MIMOSA to stay updated on their next monthly event. She workin.
Twitter:
@CiaraJibri
@HAUSofMimosaa
Instagram:
@ciarajibri
@hausofmimosa
Website: